OSHA Safety Requirements for Breweries

August 14, 2017

"It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye" is an old saying from Ancient Rome. The only rule during wrestling matches was, "No eye gouging." Everything else was allowed. The only way to be disqualified was to poke someone's eye out.

The same thing applies to brewing beer. “It’s all fun and games until someone is overcome by CO2” might be an appropriate phrase. At craft brew trade shows, we’ve spoken to dozens of people who have either succumbed to carbon dioxide in a beer tank or they know someone who has.

Most of the time it’s told as a funny story. The sudden shortness of breath is quickly followed by dizziness. The worker jumps back from the tank and hopes no one notices. Occasionally someone passes out, only to wake up on the floor surrounded by fellow workers who shrug it off as a rite of passage for all brewers. Of course, no one tells the owner. It was a stupid mistake, it was embarrassing, and it’s a lesson not soon forgotten.

According to a recent article in Craft Brewing Business, OSHA is increasingly aggressive in enforcing workplace safety requirements on employers. In 2016 they placed approximately 700 breweries on a “bad actor list.” Once you’re on the list, you can plan on significantly more OSHA visits and increased fines.

Gabriel Sierra, managing director of Prometrix Safety Consulting says the most common OSHA violations include lockout/tagout and confined spaces accidents. Both these kinds of accidents can happen in breweries where high levels of CO2 can occur.

Develop a process that allows employees to report safety concerns and incidents to the owner without fear of retaliation.

Regular safety meetings and training for employees that address all of the above.

For many breweries, the plan can be completed by working with a Safety consultant in combination with the insurance company. Brewers may even be eligible for lower cost insurance once all safety protocols have been completed.